Woodley vs. Marquardt

Strikeforce Welterweight Championship

The Matchup: It has been a long road back to the
cage for Marquardt since his release from the UFC last summer.
Then-Bellator
Fighting Championships middleweight titleholder Hector
Lombard lobbied for a bout with “The Great,” and the British
Association of Mixed Martial Arts inked him to a deal, but nothing
came to fruition, meaning that Marquardt will have been away from
live competition for approximately 16 months by the time he squares
off with Woodley for Strikeforce’s vacant 170-pound strap.

Woodley’s combination of speed and athleticism figures to give the
former middleweight King of Pancrase a
stern test in his welterweight debut. A two-time All-American
wrestler at the University of Missouri, Woodley is adept at
initiating tie-ups and forcing his opponents to the mat, where he
takes a conservative approach with top control and occasional short
punches and elbows. The St. Louis native has played to his
strengths and negated the standup of his foes in each of his last
three outings: decision victories over Tarec
Saffiedine, Paul Daley and
Jordan
Mein. His style is not going to win him any post-fight awards,
but Woodley is smart to stick with what works. Relying too much his
still-developing striking would have been a recipe for failure in
any of those bouts. Still, it would be nice to see more activity
from Woodley on top, as he is often too content to ride out
victories from a dominant position.

Marquardt does well in bouts where he is the superior wrestler.
However, against the likes of Chael Sonnen
and Yushin
Okami, the
Grudge Training Center product was grinded down over the course
of three rounds in decision defeats. To avoid a similar fate,
Marquardt must utilize movement, circling constantly to limit
Woodley’s opportunities to force clinches. The Coloradan is a
well-rounded striker and, with four knockouts in his last five UFC
victories, has power aplenty. Although Woodley’s standup is not his
strength, it will benefit him to move forward and throw
combinations. Both Sonnen and Okami had success by forcing the
action and keeping Marquardt on his heels.

If Marquardt finds himself on his back, and at some point he
probably will, he needs to either stall to force a standup or
create distance with his guard and escape back to his feet. Simply
landing elbows and attempting a few submissions from his back will
not get the job done.

The Pick: Woodley is going to be dealing with a
powerful welterweight, which means his blanketing approach will not
be enough to win rounds. Expect Marquardt to fight to his feet,
land combinations and avoid some of the mistakes that plagued him
in recent losses. Woodley will get takedowns, but “The Great” lands
the more significant offense -- both standing and on the mat -- to
get a decision.